Equine Feed Oat Project Awards Inaugural Oat Research Grant

The Equine Feed Oat Project (EFOP) announced Jan. 10 the recipient of its first equine oat research grant. Laurie Lawrence, PhD, of the University of Kentucky (UK) will receive more than $122,000 in funding for a two-year research project beginning in February 2013.

"Healthy horses have been eating oats for hundreds of years because they are safe, natural, and healthy," said Bill Wilton, chairman of the Prairie Oat Growers Association (POGA). "We know how and why oats are good for people. Dr. Lawrence's research will help us know more about why and how oats are good for horses."

POGA received matching funding for the grant from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture's Agriculture Development Fund (ADF). Each year ADF provides over $10 million in project funding to researchers in public and private research and development in order to create future growth opportunities in the provincial agriculture industry.

Lawrence is a Distinguished Service Professor at UK and has more than 30 years experience in equine nutrition. She joined UK in 1992 and has since become a leading researchers and teachers in equine nutrition. She has authored numerous papers and studies and has been honored by the industry and her peers for her work

The EFOP is an initiative of POGA, a nonprofit organization representing 15,000 Canadian oat farmers. Launched in 2010, the EFOP was created to conduct research and educate about the role of oats in equine nutrition. Since its formation in 1998, POGA has placed a high priority on funding research that has helped produce many new varieties of oats for both the human and equine markets.

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